A POEM THAT SHOOK THE FOUNDATIONS OF ZION

Poem by Yehonatan Geffen comparing Palestinian teen Ahed Tamimi to Anne Frank, Hannah Szenes and Joan of Arc infuriated Defense Minister Lieberman, who sought to then ban Geffen from all Army Radio broadcasts; AG Mandelblit said Lieberman had no legal standing to do so, an opinion Lieberman disavowed.

Yehonatan Geffen (Flash 90)

On Monday, Geffen published a short poem on his instagram account, comparing Ahed Tamimi to heroic underdogs throughout the generations, from David against Goliath to Anne Frank.

“A pretty girl 17 years old did a terrible thing

And when a proud Israeli soldier

Again invaded her home

She gave him a slap.

She was born into it and in that slap

Were fifty years of occupation and humiliation.

And on the day that the story of the struggle will be told

You, Ahed Tamimi,

The redhead,

Like David who slapped Goliath,

You will be in the same ranks as

Joan of Arc, Chana Senesh and Anne Frank.”

Ahed Tamimi Hadas Parush /Flash90

Israeli poet compares Ahed Tamimi to Anne Frank

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman this morning (Tuesday) instructed Army Radio to cease playing the works of or interviewing Israeli poet and songwriter Yehonatan Geffen, after Geffen published a poem on his Instagram account glorifying a Palestinian Authority teen who slapped Israeli soldiers.

On December 15, Ahed Tamimi, her cousin Nour Tamimi and Ahed’s mother Nariman Tamimi confronted two IDF soldiers stationed in the PA town of Nabi Salih following the outbreak of riots in the area.

In footage of the incident that went viral, the Tamimis can be seen pushing, kicking, slapping, and shouting at the soldiers, who do not respond to the provocations.

Ahed Tamimi was later arrested on December 19, and was indicted on January 1. A total of 12 charges were included in the indictment against Ahed, spanning 6 different incidents. The charges include aggravated assault, interfering with army operations, incitement, making threats, and throwing stones.

“I instructed this morning the commander of Army Radio to cease playing or interviewing Yehonatan Geffen on all station broadcasts,” Liberman said in response. “The State of Israel will not grant a platform to a man who compares a girl who died in the Holocaust and a heroic warrior who fought the Nazi regime with the brat Ahed Tamimi, who attacked a soldier. Geffen’s headline-seeking is sickening and outrageous.”

[…] I Sunflower Chong Sun Wah a woman of conscience is asking all of you, do you have a heart for the poor Palestinians? If you do the least you could do is to get Netanyahu to release Ahed instead of demanding Abbas to stick to the 2 state agreement. Let me share with you this poem written for Ahed by an Israeli, Yehonatan Geffen – A POEM THAT SHOOK THE FOUNDATIONS OF ZION https://desertpeace.wordpress.com/2018/01/23/a-poem-that-shook-the-foundations-of-zion/ […]